Prospect Talent Score

Probability of Success

History

2008-09: Josh Manson played AAA midget hockey with the Prince Albert Mintos; scoring 19 goals with 16 assists in 40 games. The son of former NHL defensemen Dave Manson, he committed to playing junior hockey for Salmon Arm in the BCHL and keeping his college options open rather than skating for the WHL’s Prince Albert Raiders.

2009-10: Manson skated in 54 of 60 games for the BCHL’s Salmon Arm, as the Silverbacks finished fourth in the Interior Division. He scored 10 goals with 14 assists and had 75 PMs. Manson scored 1 goal with 15 PMs in six playoff games.

2010-11: Manson scored 12 goals, most among defensemen, and was fourth amongst all skaters for Salmon Arm with 35 assists in his second BCHL season. Manson skated in 57 games for the Silverbacks and had 47 PMs. In 14 playoff games he had 2 goals with 7 assists and 15 PMs. In February 2011, Manson committed to playing college hockey at Quinnipiac in 2012-13 but he changed his mind and decided to play for Northeastern in 2011-12.

2011-12: Manson skated in 33 games for Northeastern University as a freshman. Paired mostly with the Huskies top two defensemen – Anthony Bitetto (NSH) and Luke Eibler – he had 4 assists and was plus-nine with 48 penalty minutes. Northeastern tied Massachusetts for eighth in points in Hockey East but missed the league tournament due to tie-breaker criteria.

2012-13: Manson played in 33 of 34 games for Northeastern in his sophomore season. In what was a tough season for the Huskies, he saw plenty of ice time and was used at times at forward late in the year due to Northeastern’s limited numbers. He finished the season with 3 goals and 4 assists and was -9 with 45 penalty minutes. The Huskies missed the Hockey East tournament; finishing last in the 10-team league.

2013-14: Manson made his pro hockey debut in April 2014 — signing a two-year entry-level contract with the Ducks and joining Anaheim AHL affiliate Norfolk — following his junior season at Northeastern. In nine regular season games with the Admirals he scored his first pro goal and was +1 with 26 penalty minutes. Norfolk finished third in the East Division and reached the second round in the playoffs. Manson scored 1 goal and was -4 with 6 penalty minutes in 10 playoff games. He skated in 33 of 37 games for Northeastern, scoring 3 goals with 7 assists, and was +12 with 65 penalty minutes. Northeastern finished tied for fourth with New Hampshire in Hockey East in the regular season but did not receive an NCAA tournament berth; falling to the Wildcats, 5-4, in the decisive third game of their Hockey East quarterfinal series.

Talent Analysis

Manson, the son of long-time NHL defenseman Dave Manson, is a converted forward who plays a physical style and uses his size to advantage. Limited in terms of offensive and technical skills, he is a reliable player in his own end and skates well for a player of his size. He is a willing combatant who will come to the aid of teammates and relishes the combative part of the game.

Future

Manson attended his first training camp with the Ducks before being assigned to Anaheim AHL affiliate Norfolk at the start of the 2014-15 season. He was re-called at the end of October and saw significant ice time in 18 NHL games with Anaheim before being returned to the Admirals in December. Manson has some offensive skills and a likes to shoot the puck from the point but his calling card at the pro level is likely to be his physicality and willingness to engage opponents. Long-term he projects as a lower pairing defenseman at the NHL level.

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Photo: Anaheim Ducks 2014 seventh-round pick Ondřej Kaše used his top-shelf speed to help his squad get promoted to the Czech Extraliga for the 2015-16 season (courtesy of Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)

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The Anaheim Ducks have managed to compile some pretty strong draft picks in recent years. Much to their enjoyment, many of them are panning out in a very good way. Dominant seasons were logged this year by many of the Ducks former first-round selections and several are getting close to the pro level. Take a look at who won what in this year’s Ducks prospect awards.

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Photo: Ducks prospect Nick Ritchie is just under a point-per-game in his OHL career. (courtesy of Terry Wilson/OHL Images)

As a new face emerges as the number one overall prospect with the Ducks, it is hard not to notice the strong group of defensemen and wingers Anaheim currently boasts. A staggering 17 of the 20 listed players on the spring list play either wing or defense. If the goal is to build from the back out, the Ducks have a blossoming mixture of talented defensemen and one of the best young goaltenders in the world to achieve that goal. Up front they also have a nice blend of size, skill, and speed to complement their NHL center depth. While the logjam may end up hurting some of these players’ chances, it currently is a big boost to the organization in terms of depth and quality.